2021 Daniel Hager

I am so grateful to have received one of the Hal Tayloe Enrichment Awards in the spring of 2021. I am interested in pursuing a future in the field of marine biology and I am part of HRA’s REACH program in Environmental Science. On the weekends and during the summer, I work as a member of the crew alongside my father on a sturgeon research and tagging program, through a contract with the USN. Our work focuses tracking in the York, James, and Pamunkey rivers, as well as offshore in the Atlantic. I am learning to maintain boats, repair fiberglass, fix engines, and navigate using GPS. I have assisted in collecting sturgeon specimens and working commercial fishing gear, and I am eager to develop my understanding of data collection and analysis. Through this project, I extended my experience in the field, conducted my own study, gathered my own data, and focused on something that interests me, personally: submerged aquatic vegetation (SAV).

SAV (also known as seagrass) is essential to the health of the Chesapeake Bay ecosystem. SAV provides nurseries for numerous species that depend upon the Bay and its rivers. Sweeping meadows of sea grasses are making a recovery thanks to a decade of restoration programs intended to capitalize on the environmental benefits of water clarity, variety and abundance of species, and overall stability of the food web (Orth). My project was designed to monitor a finite expanse of SAV near Goodwin Island, at the mouth of the York River, through the use of drone-recorded footage, and physical sampling. My goal was to successfully identify sea grass species and, if possible, detect shifts in seasonal abundance using drone technology.

I talked with Dr. Peter Berquist, a geologist at Thomas Nelson Community College, about the best drone model for use in my project and he suggested various drone options that would have a range of camera quality and durability. On the committee’s recommendation, I also had the chance to consult with Mr. Nichols about drone models. Mr. Nichols met with me and we trained to learn best practices about drone-flying prior to the launch of my study. HRA purchased a drone and I had the privilege of using it for my study. In addition to Mr. Nichols, I am also grateful to my HRA advisor, Mrs. Deeley. She offered some great suggestions about establishing a stable measurement system for the filming and sampling.

Using a hand-controlled drone, my intent was to survey and record SAV abundance using a polarized lens in a set number of sample areas approximately every two weeks over summer break (Berquist). Although my access to the study area was somewhat limited due to storms and high wind conditions on some selected study days, I succeeded in collecting data on a total of four of six scheduled trips between June 15 and August 15, 2021. On some occasions, I was able to identify two species of seagrass (widgeon grass, Ruppia maritima and eelgrass, Zostera marina) visible from the drone recordings and compare this to distribution patterns evidenced in four preselected one-meter square sample areas that were recorded in my underwater photography. However, I found that there were numerous factors that impeded my ability to record grass distributions via drone, including glare and rough surface conditions. Though dive-based photography was at times hampered by water clarity, I found that empirical observations below the water surface resulted in considerably more precise and accurate data, despite the extra effort and expertise required.

I constructed two sets of one-meter squares from PVC pipes (anchored by iron rebar) to standardize the area measured (Deeley). Sample areas were selected using a stratified random technique prior to drone surveys. I compared findings within my sample sites, every two weeks (Hager). I also recorded underwater photography of sites to determine area covered and compared this to what I can determine from air, as well as monitored water clarity with a secchi disk. I accessed Goodwin Island and the sea grass beds by boat, under the supervision of my father, who is a licensed commercial fisherman and marine biologist (PhD, VIMS) whose dissertation focussed on the ecosystem around the Goodwin Islands. I kept a detailed log of the weather, air temperature, water temperature, and water clarity (using a secchi disk). I also recorded the identifiable SAV species by drone and compared it to my physical species’ sampling. I used a family-purchased low-power microscope to identify sea grasses and my family’s I-phone to document the project.

The intended benefit of my project is to contribute to the ways in which scientific studies of sea grasses are undertaken and provide helpful baseline data for the Goodwin Island area (Duffy). I gained experience conducting my own scientific study, developed a hypothesis, gathered data and then interpreted the data to share with the scientific community. I also attended two different scientific conferences in the winter of 2022: the South East American Fisheries Society Conference in February in Charleston, SC and the Tidewater American Fisheries Society Conference in March in Nags Head, NC. While I was there, I had the opportunity to engage with a variety of scientists in the field, as well as attend presentation sessions about drone studies and subaquatic vegetation. It was exciting to discover that their findings were very similar to my own, namely that using drones to study subaquatic vegetation has a more limited application than was hoped, due to glare and surface conditions.

Ultimately, I am considering adjusting this project to focus more on diving as a means of collection and observation. I plan to conduct a long-term study over the next two summers and an analysis of the larger data set could result in my Senior Project. With my progress in the Reach Program at HRA, this project has helped me to satisfy a portion of the requirements, as well as further prepared me for my future career as a marine biologist. I am extremely grateful to the members of the Hal Tayloe Enrichment Award Committee for this tremendous opportunity.